Hurry Home
by River Tam
Summary: It was just one thing after another for Gordo this year. When his daughter ran away, he really felt hopeless. That was until his estranged wife called and said his daughter was safe. - Songfic...Read and review


**Hurry Home**

Gordo hung the last of the lights, then turned to Shelby and held out his hand for another string. The teenager stared up at her dad and raised a brow. Gingerly handing him the blue and silver lights, she looked away. "Do you have to do these stupid traditions every year?"

Gordo turned to look at the child. "I did this until I was twenty, are you implying my family's traditions are stupid?" He inquired slowly.

"Dad, I told you, I don't want to be raised Jewish. Mom isn't Jewish." She folded her arms over her beautiful pink ensemble. That was one thing that Shelby never had to worry about…money. With her dad being a famous movie director and producer, and her mother being a world-famous singer, Shelby had very little to want for. Except her mom, whom had been absent from her life since she was seven. As she understood it, her mother left because the distance was no way to have a family, and because Gordo had more time at home, it was better for him to raise their daughter. Her mother didn't even ask for visitation…she just left her and ran.

Gordo carefully stepped down from the ladder and turned to look at his sixteen year old daughter. "If you don't want to celebrate with me, that's fine, but leave your mother out of this." He sighed and looked toward the window, watching the snow fall. He'd moved to Maine in an attempt to get away from his past; something so far from his original life, it couldn't be mistaken for the same. Plus, very few people came looking for him here. "I love you, Shelby, but I won't force my religion on you."

"Thank you!" She announced coolly. "Now can I go outside or something?"

"No. You have school today. Just because it's a half-day doesn't mean you don't have to go." He replied sternly. "I'll drop you off when I go in to work."

Shelby rolled her eyes and stomped upstairs to change her clothes. "I hate you, dad."

"I love you, too, Shelby." He sighed and leaned against the window. If he didn't hear 'I hate you' at least twice a day, he felt he wasn't doing his job right. It had gotten harder on them since her mother walked out nearly a decade ago. He had wanted Shelby to experience what both her parents had growing up; a loving family. But Shelby was far from loving anything, and he wondered sometimes where he went wrong. Why did his child harbor such bitter hatred for something that was beyond his own control?

He turned to get his jacket and called up the steps. "Shelby, let's go, you have to go to school."

The child reluctantly came down the steps and stopped just short of the last step. Her venomous gaze looked at her father for a long time. "Just drop me off at Addison's house. Her mom will take us."

"…are you that ashamed of me, Shelby?" He knew that his daughter went to one of the most prestigious schools in the country, and that he was one of the wealthiest. He also knew that Shelby's best friend Addison had a very lovely mother that had a crush on him. He quietly shook his head and stared at Shelby, then turned away. "Very well. Let's go."

* * *

><p>That was the last time he'd seen his daughter. Nearly two weeks ago, on the seventh. He hadn't heard from her since, and the days seemed to drag on until he couldn't bear to go through it anymore. He wanted to call her mother and ask for help, but it was so far from a chance he didn't ask.<p>

_He's been sitting by the phone since she left  
>But it's time for work, and he just can't be late<br>So he grabs his old guitar  
>And he plays a couple bars<br>On the machine  
>And then he softly sings<em>

He played the message back again, waiting for someone to tell him where his daughter was. "_It doesn't matter what you've done, I still love you. It doesn't matter where you've been, you can still come home. And honey, if it's you, we've got a lot of making up to do. And I can't hug you on the phone, so hurry home."_

His house was full of condolences cards from people at work, but he threw them away and ripped them up. His daughter wasn't dead, and he refused to ever believe she could be. No, she ran away because she hated him. She never liked him. Back in a time when she loved him, she was young and restless, but he'd been there for her so much she felt like she was smothered. He couldn't bring himself to admit he'd been the reason why she left.

He'd left the lights on, as a beacon in the night to show her he was still there and still waiting for her. But otherwise, he had to go to work. He couldn't go to work with tears still running down his cheeks, so he brushed them away and waited, taking a deep breath. "Shelby, please come home soon," He whispered to the machine light. "I need you back home."

As he grabbed his jacket and left the house, he turned to see if the phone would ring. Nothing changed. Just her.

* * *

><p>He sat at work for a long time, just digging through old photographs. There was one of Shelby sitting on her mother's lap, reading her a bed time story. Another behind it had her holding up a pair of pink ducky pajamas she'd just gotten for Christmas. The one on his desk, the one that had never moved, even after his wife left, was one of the whole family. Smiling happily like nothing was wrong.<p>

Shelby hadn't known that just after the photograph was taken, she would be losing her mother. The child loved her mother dearly, more than she ever loved her father. That much wasn't a lie. She had always worried about her mother, and not him. He was the strong one, the one who could handle anything. He didn't need her pity.

He stepped out of the office and closed his eyes for a moment, shutting out the lights on the image on the desk. Nothing could make that image a reality anymore. Not even if his wife came home to help him look for their daughter. There was no point in calling.

_Well the message light was blinking when he got back  
>it was an old friend calling, cuz she'd just heard the news<br>_

He pulled into the driveway of his house around noon, having gone home regardless. As he fumbled to unlock the door, he heard the faint beeping sound of a message. He ran to the machine and pressed the button. It wasn't Shelby's voice he heard, but rather Miranda's.

_She said; "Man, I hope you find her. And if I see her, I'll remind her that her daddy's worried and wanting her to know."_

He smiled thankfully at the thought of Miranda helping him. She hadn't talked to him in what seemed like decades, but in reality it was only eleven years. He hadn't seen Miranda since his wife left. Gordo's voice cracked as he mumbled a _thank you_ to the message, knowing that the girl wouldn't hear it.

Gordo went to the kitchen to fix something to eat, it was the least he could do since he hadn't eaten in days. His worry was growing steadily worse every day, fear clutching his heart. What if Shelby would become another statistic? What if she was just another name on a list? He sat at the table and closed his eyes for a long time. He hadn't prayed in years, but his heart screamed that he had to. "Lord, if you're up there, can you heed the prayer of one simple man? My daughter is my life, and as someone who sacrificed their son, I'm sure you know how much she means to me. Wherever she is, if she's okay, please keep her safe for me until she's ready to come home. I miss her terribly, and I need to know she's okay. I know it's been a long time since I talked to you, but this is the only thing I really want to ask you for."

_It doesn't matter what you've done I still love you  
>It doesn't matter where you've been you can still come home<br>And honey if it's you, we've got a lot of making up to do  
>And I can't hug you on the phone so hurry home<em>

After he finished that, he went to the window and lit the Menorah for the fifth day, then closed his eyes and said his prayers. Hope crossed his mind, ever present, that his daughter was okay. He'd taught her how to survive on her own, and Lord knows she had enough money to get by. But the one thought he couldn't shake was; what if she didn't come home? What if she stayed gone?

_Well the days dragged on without a word from her  
>and it looked like she might not be coming back<em>

He heard a knock on the door and smiled at the woman on the other side. His neighbor always showed concern for him. She stared at him, her dark green eyes speaking volumes. "_Don't you think it's time you take that old message off?_" She asked.

"_No,_" He answered back, casually waiting. "_You never know when she might call."_

* * *

><p><em>She was just outside a bar in New York City<br>Her so called friends had left her all alone  
>She was scared he wouldn't want her<br>But she dialed up that old number  
>And let it ring<br>And then she heard him sing_

Shelby walked down the roads until she found Harper Avenue. She didn't know what she was looking for. Her little body was starved, and praying for a miracle. She knew in her heart that her father was praying for a miracle as well, considering it was day eight of Chanukah. She'd climbed steps, stumbled down subway entrances, carried carefully down streets, hailed cabs, turned down cabs, and sat crying at the bar where she started.

A woman stopped, her brunette hair blowing in the cold wind. She stared down at the young girl on the ground. "Do you need help?"

The girl looked up at the woman and blinked several times. She looked so familiar. "Can you take me home?"

"Where is home?" The woman asked, opening her phone. "You can't be more than sixteen or seventeen, what are you doing at a bar?"

"Trying to get back at my dad…" She looked away quietly. "Home? Where is home…home is in Maine."

"I can take you home," She whispered casually. "I was on my way home myself. Ironically, I also live in Maine."

_It doesn't matter what you've done I still love you  
>It doesn't matter where you've been you can still come home<br>And honey if it's you, we've got a lot of making up to do  
>And I can't hug you on the phone so hurry home<em>

Shelby stared at this woman for several more minutes, finding it hard to keep her eyes open in the wind. "You're very pretty."

"So are you. What's your name?" The woman asked, helping the child to her feet.

"Shelby." The child answered, looking to the woman. "What's yours?"

The woman smiled, brushing her locks back casually. "Lizzie."

"Oh, well. It's nice to meet you, Lizzie."

Lizzie handed her phone to the girl and smiled. "I'm sure your dad is worried about you. You should call him."

_He walked in just in time to hear her say_

He unlocked the door and looked away when the message stopped playing. He didn't want to hear another friend say something stupid that might make him cry again. He heard the voice on the other side of the line and threw his jacket to the floor. "_Dad, I'm on my way."_

Hours passed, he sat waiting by the door, not wanting to move. He'd left every single light in the house on in hopes she'd see it from miles away. The old Chevy pulled into the driveway and Shelby climbed out, running to her father with her arms open. "I'm so sorry, daddy. I won't ever do that again. I promise. Please don't be mad at me. I didn't mean to worry you so much. Addison said it would be fun, she said we'd call and let you know it was okay."

He cut her off by hugging her tightly again. "Shelby, I don't care what you did or where you went. I'm just glad to have you home again. I've missed you…so much. You won't ever understand my sorrow while you were gone."

He looked up when he heard the car door close. Standing gracefully as always was the tall brunette he hadn't remembered from ten years ago. No, this time, the blonde was gone and replaced by a woman he'd never seen before. She paused carefully, like a dog trying to steal some meat from a lion. "…Gordo?"

Gordo's breath stopped. He'd never thought he'd see her again. Especially not standing in front of him. "Lizzie?"

Shelby looked between them. "Dad, you know her?"

Lizzie stopped, halfway down the driveway, staring at Shelby. "It's been so long; I didn't think you would still be living here…"

Gordo turned to Shelby and smiled. "You don't remember her, do you, Shelby?"

The child shook her head and looked away. "I'm sorry, dad, is she a friend of yours?"

He turned away. "She's your mother."

The teenager stared at the woman for a long time, finally recognizing those green eyes, that beautiful smile, those dark brown locks. She looked just like her. She looked down and frowned. "I'm sorry, I don't remember her."

"It's not too late, Shelby, to get to know me." Lizzie answered with a smile. "If your dad will allow it, that is."

"Promise you won't leave again?" Gordo asked. "I can't stand to live with you walking away again."

"Nowhere to go," She answered. "I sold my apartment, I was on my way to California again, and then I met this one on the side of the road and offered to help her. I decided to go home; it's been far too long."

Gordo smiled graciously. "Welcome home, Lizzie." He held out his arms so both girls could hug him.

"Happy Chanukah, dad." Shelby smiled.

* * *

><p><em>Rushed. Crappy. XD I heard the song on the radio again and thought it would be the perfect story. I'm done for a while, until I can find the inspiration that left me. I might finish off Star of David, but I'm not sure yet. I've only got like…3 days to do it lol. Anywayyyy hope you guys liked it. Read and review.<em>


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